Page 217 - How to Be a Conscious Eater - Making Food Choices That Are Good for You

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SELL BY:

THE TRUTH BEHIND THE DATE

n terms of food safety or health risks, it’s generally fine to
eat foods past the “sell by,” “use by,” and “best if used by”
Idates listed on packages. Almost always, these labels are
food manufacturers’ suggestions for peak freshness and taste,
not expiration dates. In other words, they’re about quality, not
safety. The labels can be confusing, though, because the defi-
nitions of the terms aren’t standardized, and labeling practices
tend to differ from one product to another and from one man-
ufacturer to another.
There’s usually quite a bit more time remaining on the clock
than the labels would have you believe. In general, most foods
can be eaten days, weeks, or even months past those printed
dates. Though over generations, many of us have lost the con-
fidence to trust our instincts on whether food is spoiled, we’re
actually wired with pretty sophisticated detectors. By that I
mean our five senses. You take a look at a food and see if it
has grown mold or appears slimy, for example, or you take a
whiff and notice an off smell. Mold is a serious spoilage issue
because it can produce toxins.
Foodborne illness usually happens not because of decay or
aging, a natural process, but when there’s contamination by
a pathogen on a farm or at a processing plant. Pay the most
attention to label dates for the same foods that are consid-
ered unsafe for pregnant women: deli meats, unpasteurized
dairy products, ready-to-eat refrigerated foods, and hot dogs
and sausages that aren’t fully cooked. The reason these are

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